Rory McIlroy will lose over £15,000 after his underwhelming performance at the PGA Championship. There were huge expectations for the Masters champion at Quail Hollow, a venue where he has enjoyed historic success.
However, McIlroy endured a horrid time and was never near the leading pack. He was packing his clubs back into his car before eventual winner Scottie Scheffler had even teed off for his final round. The Northern Irishman finished tied for 47th with three over par. It was not part of the script that was meant to follow his heroics at Augusta only a month ago.
And now, McIlroy faces losing £15,266.42 in taxes after the disappointment of the second major championship of the year. As the 36-year-old lives in the United States, he pays taxes there and not in the United Kingdom.
McIlroy earned £36,805.09 ($49,190) for his performance at the PGA Championship. It is a handsome sum, but does not come close to the £2.6million ($3.42m) won by Scheffler in North Carolina.
The top rate of federal tax in the US is 37 per cent, meaning McIlroy will pay £13,610.28 ($18,191.30). He will also pay state tax in North Carolina, which is a flat 4.5 per cent rate. That means McIlroy owes a further £1,656.14 ($2,213.55). He will take home £21,538.67.
Consternation around how McIlroy might fare at the PGA Championship began before he had even teed off. It has been widely reported that his driver did not meet tournament standards, having used it during the practice sessions.
McIlroy was forced to change his driver and, coincidence or not, everything seemed to go downhill from there. He shot a round of 74 last Thursday before threatening a revival with 69 on Friday, which squeezed him into the cut for the final two rounds. However, a pair of 72s over the weekend meant he was never in contention at a tournament where many other big names also seemed to struggle.
The media did not hear from McIlroy afterwards. He did not conduct any broadcast interviews and did not appear in the press conference facility. Instead, television crews saw him packing his clubs into his car after sharing a brief chat with Jon Rahm, who was about to start his final round.
McIlroy’s next opportunity to claim a sixth major comes at the US Open. That tournament takes place at Oakmont Country Club, Pennsylvania, between June 12-15.
